Hi everyone,
As promised, the Feedback Thread has been reopened. However, there are a few things I’d like to discuss before you get back to posting.
Many of you posted recently to express your disagreement with our decision to ban a particular member of the forum for 1 year. We have read every word. We hear you and we understand that you’re upset, but I have to inform you that we will not be reversing this decision. The ban will remain in place for the entire duration unless that member reaches out via the Contact Us link and we can reach a place of mutual understanding.
I know this is not the news you want to hear. I fully expect you to feel protective of your friend and ally. I know I would if I were in your position. I understand why you would respect someone so outspoken for so many wonderful causes. Despite what you may believe, the entire staff cares about these same causes, too.
Regarding further discussion on this topic, in order to keep it constructive, we’d like to focus on actionable items. We have heard your feelings on the matter, but what would be most helpful is to have an open conversation about where our differences lie. With that objective in mind, I’m going to give you a preview of one of our major feedback topics: Hateful and Controversial Content.
Note: This is not the full response which is still a huge work in progress. I hope to have that ready to post in the next month or two. I haven’t been able to work on it much due to other priorities.
Responding to hateful content
There have been a lot of complaints about how we respond to hateful content. We are not quick enough or consistent enough have been the main themes. On this, we are generally in agreement. There are reasons: availability of staff, reviewing things on a case-by-case basis, behind-the-scenes factors that only staff are aware of, etc. But this is an area where we recognize plenty of room for improvement.
When it comes to the availability of staff, the issue is less about how many staff members we have and more about our available times. Many of our staff members are in North America, although we do have some spread out in other areas of the world, and we all have jobs, families, friends, or other responsibilities. There is a large chunk of time where the majority of us are sleeping, working, or doing non-TBT related things. Thus, it can sometimes take a while before we even see a report.
However, there are still a few things we can do to cut down on some of this lag time that you experience. Some of us check in frequently throughout our day. We may not be able to send a full-fledged response to a report or sort out an argument occurring in a thread, but we can utilize the tools available to us to stop the harm in the interim. We can unapprove posts to remove them from sight while we determine the best action. We can close threads temporarily to give everyone a chance to cool off until we have time to read through everything and understand the issue.
In terms of consistency, we don’t think there will ever be a one-size-fits-all solution. We look at things wholistically, so each case is unique. But we have discussed the creation of a loose guideline which could be referenced by members and staff alike to serve as a standard practice for cases that don’t go too far off the beaten path. Obviously, there would still be exceptions, but we’d acknowledge that deviating from the guidelines would require a justifiable reason, even if we weren’t able to disclose that reason to the public.
Also, we believe there are differences between people who are truly so filled with hate they will never change, people who are uneducated or misinformed but with time and positive experiences can learn and grow, and people who do not have ill intent but are not comprehending or communicating their thoughts appropriately.
The first group are people we do want to root out quickly and permanently, but we need to determine that they belong to that group which often cannot be done on a first offense. It takes a little time where we provide warnings and message the member to give them an opportunity to show some attempt at understanding. That does, unfortunately, mean that they are still free to post during that time, so you could see and report multiple posts before they are well and truly gone. We are planning to make some changes here, though.
We’d like to be quicker to ban these types of members before they do significant harm to the community. Therefore, we’ll change how we initially engage with these people. Previously, if the post was too vague, we did not give warnings or remove the content. Going forward, we will remove vague but questionable content immediately along with a message to the member explaining our reasoning. We will not give warnings for this, in case there is a misunderstanding, but we’ll gauge their reaction. We’ll also try to be more hands-on with reviewing their other posts to see if this is a trend or a one-off situation. Of course, if the post is clearly in violation of our rules against discrimination, we’ll delete the post, warn the member, and include an explanation as to why their comment is offensive. If the person does not show any inclination to accept responsibility or change the way they post, they will ultimately be banned.
When it comes to members who are uneducated or misinformed regarding sensitive topics, we choose to make a good faith attempt at educating them. This group can include vulnerable members who have been misled but have the capacity to change. We don’t believe they are bad people and when we reach out to them with kindness, they often ask questions in an effort to understand or display remorse for hurting people. The process is not overnight. It takes time for anyone to readjust their way of thinking and unlearn bad habits. However, we believe that TBT is one of the better places for that to happen since they are surrounded by a variety of members from different marginalized groups and can see first-hand that we are all simply human. Plus, the people of TBT are without a doubt some of the kindest and most wonderful I’ve ever encountered.
We recognize that this does put an extra burden on you, our valued members, in being exposed to the mistakes these members make along the way, but we will do better about shouldering this burden so you don’t have to. We don’t expect any of you to have do the educating, only to be tolerant of people as they better themselves. We will accept that responsibility and still try to protect this space by removing offending posts quickly and communicating with these members privately so they can learn from their mistakes. The one thing we do not want to do is push them out where they will likely gravitate to places that echo their misguided beliefs and become more entrenched in them.
Finally, there is the last group, who are largely unaware that the content they post is harmful. This can be a one-off scenario or it can happen repeatedly. For reasons such as mental illness, neurodivergence, or other hidden disabilities, those who repeat this behavior tend to struggle with the complex social reasoning behind why something is offensive. That is not to say that everyone who falls into those categories has the same difficulties. We know that many of you can identify with one or more of these traits while still recognizing a harmful statement. But not everyone’s experiences are the same and turning our backs on these members for something that is often beyond their control feels wrong and not in the spirit of inclusivity.
This is something staff will need to discuss further to try to come up with a way to protect you all from hateful or controversial posts while also not discriminating against this group.
Politics and Religion
There has been debate about whether or not we should ban the discussion of politics and religion in general to avoid controversial topics. Right now, we have no plans to do this.
We considered it as one of several options because gaming forums are not staffed to moderate these types of posts. They sometimes require an intimate knowledge of the subject matter that we may not have. We are often pressed for time as it is and having to research a politician, a law, or a court ruling that we’ve never heard of can seem daunting.
However, politics are increasingly entangled in social issues, human rights, and can have a significant impact on someone’s life. Likewise, religion is deeply personal and often enmeshed in a person’s thoughts and feelings. Deciding where to draw the line is incredibly complicated and probably more of a pain to moderate than just allowing them to exist on the forum.
This was a long post, but I think a lot of these items needed to be addressed to get us back in the same book, if not on the same page. I’ve tried to share as many of our plans for improvements as possible, but this is still a discussion thread. We are open to hearing your suggestions and opinions, even if they disagree with our own. We only ask for a healthy and respectful dialogue.
As promised, the Feedback Thread has been reopened. However, there are a few things I’d like to discuss before you get back to posting.
Many of you posted recently to express your disagreement with our decision to ban a particular member of the forum for 1 year. We have read every word. We hear you and we understand that you’re upset, but I have to inform you that we will not be reversing this decision. The ban will remain in place for the entire duration unless that member reaches out via the Contact Us link and we can reach a place of mutual understanding.
I know this is not the news you want to hear. I fully expect you to feel protective of your friend and ally. I know I would if I were in your position. I understand why you would respect someone so outspoken for so many wonderful causes. Despite what you may believe, the entire staff cares about these same causes, too.
Regarding further discussion on this topic, in order to keep it constructive, we’d like to focus on actionable items. We have heard your feelings on the matter, but what would be most helpful is to have an open conversation about where our differences lie. With that objective in mind, I’m going to give you a preview of one of our major feedback topics: Hateful and Controversial Content.
Note: This is not the full response which is still a huge work in progress. I hope to have that ready to post in the next month or two. I haven’t been able to work on it much due to other priorities.
Responding to hateful content
There have been a lot of complaints about how we respond to hateful content. We are not quick enough or consistent enough have been the main themes. On this, we are generally in agreement. There are reasons: availability of staff, reviewing things on a case-by-case basis, behind-the-scenes factors that only staff are aware of, etc. But this is an area where we recognize plenty of room for improvement.
When it comes to the availability of staff, the issue is less about how many staff members we have and more about our available times. Many of our staff members are in North America, although we do have some spread out in other areas of the world, and we all have jobs, families, friends, or other responsibilities. There is a large chunk of time where the majority of us are sleeping, working, or doing non-TBT related things. Thus, it can sometimes take a while before we even see a report.
However, there are still a few things we can do to cut down on some of this lag time that you experience. Some of us check in frequently throughout our day. We may not be able to send a full-fledged response to a report or sort out an argument occurring in a thread, but we can utilize the tools available to us to stop the harm in the interim. We can unapprove posts to remove them from sight while we determine the best action. We can close threads temporarily to give everyone a chance to cool off until we have time to read through everything and understand the issue.
In terms of consistency, we don’t think there will ever be a one-size-fits-all solution. We look at things wholistically, so each case is unique. But we have discussed the creation of a loose guideline which could be referenced by members and staff alike to serve as a standard practice for cases that don’t go too far off the beaten path. Obviously, there would still be exceptions, but we’d acknowledge that deviating from the guidelines would require a justifiable reason, even if we weren’t able to disclose that reason to the public.
Also, we believe there are differences between people who are truly so filled with hate they will never change, people who are uneducated or misinformed but with time and positive experiences can learn and grow, and people who do not have ill intent but are not comprehending or communicating their thoughts appropriately.
The first group are people we do want to root out quickly and permanently, but we need to determine that they belong to that group which often cannot be done on a first offense. It takes a little time where we provide warnings and message the member to give them an opportunity to show some attempt at understanding. That does, unfortunately, mean that they are still free to post during that time, so you could see and report multiple posts before they are well and truly gone. We are planning to make some changes here, though.
We’d like to be quicker to ban these types of members before they do significant harm to the community. Therefore, we’ll change how we initially engage with these people. Previously, if the post was too vague, we did not give warnings or remove the content. Going forward, we will remove vague but questionable content immediately along with a message to the member explaining our reasoning. We will not give warnings for this, in case there is a misunderstanding, but we’ll gauge their reaction. We’ll also try to be more hands-on with reviewing their other posts to see if this is a trend or a one-off situation. Of course, if the post is clearly in violation of our rules against discrimination, we’ll delete the post, warn the member, and include an explanation as to why their comment is offensive. If the person does not show any inclination to accept responsibility or change the way they post, they will ultimately be banned.
When it comes to members who are uneducated or misinformed regarding sensitive topics, we choose to make a good faith attempt at educating them. This group can include vulnerable members who have been misled but have the capacity to change. We don’t believe they are bad people and when we reach out to them with kindness, they often ask questions in an effort to understand or display remorse for hurting people. The process is not overnight. It takes time for anyone to readjust their way of thinking and unlearn bad habits. However, we believe that TBT is one of the better places for that to happen since they are surrounded by a variety of members from different marginalized groups and can see first-hand that we are all simply human. Plus, the people of TBT are without a doubt some of the kindest and most wonderful I’ve ever encountered.
We recognize that this does put an extra burden on you, our valued members, in being exposed to the mistakes these members make along the way, but we will do better about shouldering this burden so you don’t have to. We don’t expect any of you to have do the educating, only to be tolerant of people as they better themselves. We will accept that responsibility and still try to protect this space by removing offending posts quickly and communicating with these members privately so they can learn from their mistakes. The one thing we do not want to do is push them out where they will likely gravitate to places that echo their misguided beliefs and become more entrenched in them.
Finally, there is the last group, who are largely unaware that the content they post is harmful. This can be a one-off scenario or it can happen repeatedly. For reasons such as mental illness, neurodivergence, or other hidden disabilities, those who repeat this behavior tend to struggle with the complex social reasoning behind why something is offensive. That is not to say that everyone who falls into those categories has the same difficulties. We know that many of you can identify with one or more of these traits while still recognizing a harmful statement. But not everyone’s experiences are the same and turning our backs on these members for something that is often beyond their control feels wrong and not in the spirit of inclusivity.
This is something staff will need to discuss further to try to come up with a way to protect you all from hateful or controversial posts while also not discriminating against this group.
Politics and Religion
There has been debate about whether or not we should ban the discussion of politics and religion in general to avoid controversial topics. Right now, we have no plans to do this.
We considered it as one of several options because gaming forums are not staffed to moderate these types of posts. They sometimes require an intimate knowledge of the subject matter that we may not have. We are often pressed for time as it is and having to research a politician, a law, or a court ruling that we’ve never heard of can seem daunting.
However, politics are increasingly entangled in social issues, human rights, and can have a significant impact on someone’s life. Likewise, religion is deeply personal and often enmeshed in a person’s thoughts and feelings. Deciding where to draw the line is incredibly complicated and probably more of a pain to moderate than just allowing them to exist on the forum.
This was a long post, but I think a lot of these items needed to be addressed to get us back in the same book, if not on the same page. I’ve tried to share as many of our plans for improvements as possible, but this is still a discussion thread. We are open to hearing your suggestions and opinions, even if they disagree with our own. We only ask for a healthy and respectful dialogue.
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